Asia/Oceania

China says its first joint air patrol with Russia was not aimed at third parties, after South Korea complained the warplanes violated its airspace. Chinese Defence Ministry spokesman Wu Qian says the Chinese and Russian air forces conducted a patrol on Tuesday over the Sea of Japan and the East China Sea without entering other countries’ airspace. Wu says China dispatched two H-6K bombers in a mixed formation with two Russian Tu-95s to “deepen and develop” the two countries’ strategic partnership. A South Korean official said Chinese warplanes entered South Korea’s air defence identification zone off its southwest coast before its joint flight with the Russian planes. South Korean air force jets fired 360 rounds of warning shots at a Russian aircraft, and Seoul filed official protests with Beijing and Moscow. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying noted that the air defence identification zone is not territorial airspace and others are entitled to fly through it.

Taiwan’s intelligence chief quit after accusations that an agent attempted to use President Tsai Ing Wen’s overseas trip to secure about 9800 cartons of tax-free cigarettes. National Security Bureau Director-General Peng Sheng-chu resigned, hours after the smuggling attempt was discovered upon Tsai’s return from a visit to the Caribbean that included a US-stopover. Tsai said in a Facebook post that the allegations represented unacceptable conduct by government officials. At least one National Security Bureau official was among 10 suspects under investigation by the Taipei District Prosecutors Office in connection with the cigarette-smuggling case, agency spokeswoman Chen Chia-hsiu said. The group was suspected of ordering more than NT$6 million ($288,360) worth of duty-free cigarettes at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport and storing them at a warehouse on-site.